70+6'& 0#6+105 ' 'EQPQOKE CPF 5QEKCN Distr. GENERAL %QWPEKN E/C.12/1998/SR.35/Add.1 23 November 1998 Original: ENGLISH COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS Nineteenth session SUMMARY RECORD OF THE SECOND PART (PUBLIC)* OF THE 35th MEETING Held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, on Thursday, 19 November 1998, at 11 a.m. Chairperson: Mr. GRISSA CONTENTS CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS: (a) REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLES 16 AND 17 OF THE COVENANT (continued) Third periodic report of Cyprus (continued) * The summary record of the first part (closed) of the meeting appears as document E/C.12/1998/SR.35. This record is subject to correction. Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages. They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing Section, room E.4108, Palais des Nations, Geneva. Any corrections to the records of the public meetings of the Committee at this session will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly after the end of the session. GE.98-19798 (E) E/C.12/1998/SR.35/Add.1 page 2 The public part of the meeting was called to order at 11 a.m. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS: (a) REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLES 16 AND 17 OF THE COVENANT (agenda item 6) (continued) Third periodic report of Cyprus (continued) (E/1994/104/Add.12; HRI/CORE/1/Add.28/Rev.1) 1. At the invitation of the Chairperson, the members of the delegation of Cyprus resumed their places at the Committee table. 2. The CHAIRPERSON invited the delegation to respond to comments and questions raised during the 34th meeting. 3. Ms. LOIZIDOU (Cyprus), replying to questions on the draft Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, said that the Law Commissioner of the Republic of Cyprus had drafted an opinion on the subject, which was currently under consideration by the Government. Basically, his view was that an optional protocol would be a useful mechanism in ensuring respect for the rights enshrined in the Covenant, but more countries were likely to ratify it if they had the possibility of derogating from certain articles. However, a limit should be placed on the number of articles that could be derogated from, so as not to alter the basic thrust of the protocol. Cyprus was in favour of the establishment of a working group to promote its adoption. 4. In reply to questions relating to the National Institution for the Protection of Human Rights, she said that its structure and mandate were outlined in a decision of the Council of Ministers, dated 16 September 1998, which had been circulated to members of the Committee. The President of the Institution was to be an independent public officer appointed by the Council of Ministers for a five-year renewable term. The Institution would consist of two committees, the Implementation Committee and the Steering Committee, representing the Government and the non-governmental sector respectively. The Implementation Committee comprised representatives of the Offices of the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Administration as well as the main government ministries or any other ministry or government department or a member of the Steering Committee, whose participation was deemed necessary. Representatives were appointed for terms of at least two years, except in the case of the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 5. The Steering Committee consisted of a chairman and members. The Chairman, appointed by the Council of Ministers, must be a person with legal qualifications and experience in human rights issues both in Cyprus and abroad. The members of the Steering Committee, who must be persons of known status, were also appointed by the Council of Ministers following proposals by private human rights organizations, the University of Cyprus, the House of Representatives and any other competent professional organizations. The term of office of the Chairman and members of the Steering Committee was five years, and could be renewed. E/C.12/1998/SR.35/Add.1 page 3 6. The decision of the Council of Ministers also contained provisions relating to the premises of the Institution and equipment required for its efficient operation. The Institution would be temporarily accommodated in the offices of the Law Commissioner. 7. The functions of the Institution were to provide information and assistance with a view to promoting awareness about human rights, to advise the Government on any human rights matter, to study legislation and case law as well as administrative arrangements concerning the protection of human rights, and to prepare and submit reports to competent bodies, including those set up under international treaties, such as the Covenant. Most of those duties devolved upon the Implementation Committee. 8. The Steering Committee had the special task of investigating and reporting on complaints of human rights violations. There was no possibility of duplication of efforts between the Steering Committee and the Commissioner for Administration (Ombudsman): the latter was not empowered to examine complaints from the private sector, which were the exclusive domain of the Steering Committee. Moreover, paragraph 10 (3) (b) of the ministerial decision on the Institution stipulated that the Steering Committee did not have the right to examine complaints which fell within the competence of other bodies such as the Commissioner for Administration (Ombudsman). 9. The reason the Institution had been established by virtue of a ministerial decision and not by law was principally to save time. The drafting, reading and approval of a bill by parliament would be a lengthy process and it had been felt necessary to set up the Institution immediately. 10. Mr. RIEDEL said that, although the establishment of the Institution was a welcome development, a legal basis for its existence, ratified by parliament, would certainly be preferable. The fact that the Institution had already been set up and was operational should considerably speed up any legislative process that might get under way. He therefore suggested that steps should be taken along those lines without further delay. 11. Ms. LOIZIDOU (Cyprus) confirmed that the Government intended to do precisely that. The independence of the Institution was guaranteed by the fact that its Chairman was the Law Commissioner, an independent officer appointed by the President of the Republic on the same terms as the Attorney-General, the Auditor-General and the President and members of the Supreme Court. The participation of representatives from the private sector afforded an additional safeguard and the enactment of suitable legislation in future would further strengthen its independence. The participation of government officials was considered necessary for promoting and steering through legislative changes aimed at harmonizing national legislation with the provisions of human rights treaties. 12. The Institution had already held two meetings. At its 2nd meeting, on 17 November 1998, it had been decided to organize events to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and publicize the work of various United Nations bodies. E/C.12/1998/SR.35/Add.1 page 4 13. Mr. ADEKUOYE asked whether police officers and other government officials were given appropriate training on human rights instruments and their responsibilities stemming from them. 14. Ms. LOIZIDOU (Cyprus) answered that annual training sessions on human rights were organized at the Cyprus Police Academy. The non-governmental sector was also active in human rights education. Recently one NGO, the Committee for the Restoration of Human Rights throughout Cyprus, had published an information booklet on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and had distributed it to the National Guard through the Ministry of Defence. 15. Since Cyprus had ratified the Covenant, a considerable number of laws had been enacted which were fully in keeping with its provisions. They included the Legal Status of Children Born out of Wedlock (Ratification) Law (1979); the Maternity Protection Law (1987); the Press Law (1989); the Equal Pay for Men and Women for Work of Equal Value Law (1989); the Family Courts Law (1990); the Commissioner for Administration Law (1991); the European Social Insurance Code (Ratification) Law (1991); the Property Rights of Spouses (Regulation) Law (1991); and the Public Educational Service (Amendment) Law (1991). 16. The delegation had been unable to find any record of court cases in Cyprus in which the provisions of the Covenant had been invoked. Further research would be undertaken and the Committee would be informed of the results in due course. 17. There had been cases in which habeas corpus had been invoked, mainly in connection with refusal of entry or expulsion affecting foreign nationals. Every person in Cyprus had the right to petition the Supreme Court for habeas corpus on the grounds of unlawful detention. 18. Complaints had also been successfully lodged with the Commissioner for Administration (Ombudsman), sometimes with significant implications for Cypriot legislation. For instance, a complaint had been lodged by a Cypriot woman against the Ministry of the Interior concerning a decision by a public official to prevent her marriage to a foreign national, on the strength of a police officer's suspicion that it was a marriage of convenience, although she had fully complied with the preliminary procedures for mixed marriage. The would-be spouse had been ordered to leave the country, since he had no valid residence permit. The Ombudsman had found that the woman's fundamental rights to privacy and to marry the partner of her choice had been violated by the intervention of a public authority.